Humørkort-stativ-sælgerens Søn (2002) - Danish laughs in small-scope relationship comedy

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Naughty hijinks with popular stars seems to be the promise from this poster for Peter Bay's Humørkort-stativ-sælgerens Søn

A Copenhagen publishing house editor is under pressure from his broody girlfriend, meanwhile he gets a new Swedish boss, who wants him to cut ties with his poet friend, alcoholic Jack.

 

Humørkort-stativ-sælgerens Søn is written by Mads Brenøe (Surferne Kommer (1998)), Dunja Gry Jensen (Terribly Happy/Frygtelig Lykkelig (2008)) and co-writer/director Peter Bay (Fede Tider (1996)). The original Danish title translates to, 'the humor card mount salesman's son'.

Hella Joof (Normalerweize (2004-11)) walks determinedly into a very funny role here, which exposes some of the strategies of modern women in relationships, and Thomas Bo Larsen (The Hunt/Jagten (2012)) is good as an atypical, modern pushover man with an ugly haircut. Philip Zandén (Micke & Veronica (2014)) also acts as the Swedish boss with comedic brilliance.

The plot is rife with unlikely and clearly constructed occurrences, and co-star Anette Støvelbæk (Speed Walking/Kapgang (2014)) is given a flat character who's just a sweet veterinarian and that's it. The minuscule budget also becomes conspicuous, as when a scene that clearly calls for extras has no extras, - and in the animated opening credits, which are so primitive that they appear to come from an American 1960s film. 

So the sum and the width in Humørkort-stativ-sælgerens Søn leaves something to be desired, but the film is fun to watch, although for Danes primarily.

 

Related post:

 

Peter Bay: Kun en Pige (1995) - Schrøder's lavish Lise Nørgaard biopic (co-writer)

 

 

Cost: Unknown, projected 1.43 mil. $

Box office: Approximately 740k $

= Uncertain but likely a huge flop (projected return of 0.51 times its cost)

[Humørkort-stativ-sælgerens Søn was released 28 June (Denmark) and runs 85 minutes. Shooting took place in Copenhagen, Denmark. The film sold 69,999 tickets in Denmark (the only theatrical release market), coming to around 5.18 mil. DKK or 0.74 mil. $. With a projected cost of 10 mil. DKK, the film ranks as a huge flop. It was nominated for 1 Robert, Denmark's Oscar. Bay only returned with a short, Striber (2003). Joof returned in Det Brune Punktum: Far Brugte Ikke Noget (2002, video) and theatrically in Someone Like Hodder/En Som Hodder (2003); Larsen in Hjerteafdelingen (2002, TV-series)), with a voice performance in The Boy Who Wanted to Be a Bear/Drengen Der Ville Gøre Det Umulige (2002) and with a physical theatrical performance in It's All About Love (2003). 311 IMDb users have given Humørkort-stativ-sælgerens Søn a 3.6/10 average rating.]

 

What do you think of Humørkort-stativ-sælgerens Søn? 

Sprængfarlig Bombe (2006) - The two Jensens' satire is unrefined but hilarious

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Two distinct layers of society, members of the lower class and of the higher creative class, meet on this fun-promising poster for Tomas Villum Jensen's Clash of Egos

Tonny, a modern caveman recently released after serving a stint in prison for violence, works at a garbage station and has just lost visitation rights to see his children, when he snaps over an awful local art film that he has recently bought tickets for.

Clash of Egos is written by Anders Thomas Jensen (The Salvation (2014)) and directed by Tomas Villum Jensen (Love at First Hiccough/Kærlighed ved Første Hik (1999)). The Danish title translates to 'highly charged bomb'.
Both Ulrich Thomsen (Hitman (2007)) as Tonny and Nikolaj Lie Kaas (Max (2000)) as the art film's director Claus Volter are excellent and play their opposed characters with real panache.
The central idea of a primitive brute meeting a pretentious art film snoot is funny and original, and the film has lots of funny moments.
Clash of Egos could have been even better, if the production hadn't looked like rubbish; if Volter's ridiculous art film had been presented sharper; and if the writing had been a little smarter here and there. But these minor complaints don't rob the film of its considerable laughs and primed stars.

Watch a clip from the beginning of the film here, where Tonny has made the mistake of taking his kids to see an inappropriate art film in the cinema

Cost: Unknown
Box office: Uncertain - likely in excess of 2.82 mil. $
= Uncertain - but likely a huge flop
[Sprængfarlig Bombe was released 25 August (Denmark) and runs 90 minutes. Shooting took place in Denmark, including Copenhagen. The film sold 272,140 tickets in production country Denmark, making it a solid hit locally in the small Danish market. It was shown at 4 minor film festivals and released in 2 foreign markets subsequently, likely with negligible grosses. If made on a realistic 20 mil. DKK budget, approximately 2.95 mil. $, the film should likely rank as a huge flop theatrically. It was nominated for a Robert award (Denmark's Oscar). Jensen returned with Ved Verdens Ende (2009). Thomsen returned in Der Liebeswunsch (2006); Kaas in Pu-239 (2006). 2,225 IMDb-users have given Sprængfarlig Bombe a 6.0/10 average rating.]

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